Imperatives of Human Resource Practices in the New Millennium - Literature review Example

Management and Employees This paper aims to discuss the nuances of management and employees within an organization. It explores this by discussing one statement and addressing one major question. Management gets the employees it deserves is the statement to be discussed. It aims to discuss this statement through Douglas McGregor’s Theory X and Y, by exploring two sides of the management. The question addresses how the management can ensure that it gets the employees it wants. It elaborates on four strategies that management can adopt to ensure that it gets the employees it wants. References will be drawn from a series of sources such as databases, texts, books and journals using the Harvard Referencing System. The statement, management gets the employees it deserves, can be explored and discussed form two angles based on Theory X and Theory Y developed by Douglas McGregor at the MIT Sloan School of Management in the 1960s (ACCEL Team Development, Online). Through his theories he proposed two basic approaches in managing the workforce within an organization, both having a fundamental premise that the primary role of the management is to bring together the various factors of production, which includes people for the sake of economic benefit to the organization. However beyond the common premise the theories are opposite in nature and diverge to convey different things (Business Balls, Online). Exploring Theory X, the management or leadership within the organization, assumes that employees are fundamentally lazy, dislike work and will avoid it if they can. Furthermore it assumes that a majority of the employees are unaspiring, have no desire to accept responsibility and like to be directed by their superiors. Managers also assume that employees have little or no aptitude for creativity, are self-centered and hence do not care about organizational goals. Their motivation takes place only at security and psychological levels. And lastly although they are assumed to be gullible and unintelligent they are also assumed to resist any change made in the organization (Envision Software Incorporated, Online). As a result of these assumptions Theory X managers also assume that the employees need to be directed, threatened with punishment and forced to do work in order to achieve organizational objectives and goals. The author says that Theory X managers believe that all issues must end in blaming someone; since they think that all employees are there only for their selfish purposes namely money and personal security. Additionally they take a very pessimistic view of the employees and lack basic trust. Theory X managers are seen to hamper employee productivity and morale. The end result of this kind of assumption leads Theory X managers to be authoritative, intolerant, short-tempered, are poor listeners, one-way communicators and produce poor results. The author analyzes the statement from this point, and concludes that Theory X managers will get employees who will be lazy, unenthusiastic, irresponsible and unambitious. The employees under a Theory X management will prefer to be directed and will not care about organizational goals and objectives. According to Schein (2004), in his theory McGregor also noted that since human beings are naturally malleable, they respond according to the assumptions that are made about them. Since in Theory X, managers assume that employees are untrustworthy and are controlled, the employees under such a manager are more often likely to act untrustworthy and irresponsible. A very basic example of this is The United States Federal and State income tax procedures. The forms issued for the income tax procedures and the procedures themselves indicate clearly that the government assumes that the people will cheat when they pay taxes (Fisher, 1999). This assumption naturally leads people to cheat the government when they pay their respective income taxes. Another example of this is when certain companies assume that their employees are untrustworthy and have extensive paperwork and various processes such as Time clocks, expense reports, expenditure authorization process, doctor certificates etc (Fisher, 1999). This drives employees to be late, give false expense sheets, doctor certificates etc., as the assumption about them is such. Employee empowerment is also lost. Fisher (1999) also relates an experience he had with employees under a Theory X management. He says that while interacting with a set of union members of one company, he found out that the management required the employees to bring a doctor certificate every time they took a sick leave. Since they were many previous abuses the company chose this method to tighten the policy. The result was that workers assumed that the management does not trust them and hence treats them like children. Consequently, one worker went as far as saying that he would get a note from his mother, as he could not afford a doctor. All of the above examples prove the statement that the management only gets employees it deserves. The employees behave according to the way they are treated by the management. This paragraph explores Theory Y management or leadership, which has an entirely different set of assumptions about the employees. The Theory Y managers assume that for employees, effort put into work is as natural and easy as play, provided the conditions are favourable to them. They assume that employees are generally highly motivated, ambitious, self-directed and creative. They are conscious of organizational goals and objectives and enjoy responsibility, autonomy and empowerment. Commitment and efforts are motivated by a need for achievement in job. If given the chance they are generally assumed to be creative and forward thinkers. The general belief of Theory Y managers is that employees enjoy the mental and physical work that they do in the organization and given good working conditions, all employees will want to do well, as there is some hidden creativity in every employee. Theory Y managers are generally very encouraging, patient listeners and are tolerant. They participate and build teams and are very concerned about employee welfare. The author now analyzes Managers in Theory Y, who entertain positive attitudes and assumptions towards their employees. These managers also encourage workers and remove the barriers that prevent them from accomplishing the tasks assigned to them and realizing their full potential. In his book The Human Side of Enterprise, McGregor (1960), urges managers to be open to assume a more positive perception of the employees and the possibilities that this assumption would create. This is because enlightened managers who use the assumptions of Theory Y achieve more success with better results and performance and allow people to grow and develop thus bringing benefits to the organization. Examining the statement from this angle, the author says that Theory Y managers or leaders will have employees who are hard working, responsible, highly motivated, ambitious and self-directed. For Theory Y managers, the employees are positive and creative as they are assumed to be so, by their managers. This is because Theory Y managers allow the employees to satisfy their higher order needs. These needs bring out the maximum potential of the employees; thereby bring both the employee and the organization benefits (Rabin, 2003). Schein (2004) notes major examples of two organizations driven by Theory Y. In the first one he assesses the core assumptions with regards to human nature in DEC. The basic assumptions at DEC are that individuals are inherently self-motivated and are capable of being responsible and engage in creative decision making. The result of these set of assumptions led DEC in the mid-1980s to decide to compete against IBM and overtaking IBM by mid 2000. The second example ascertains the core assumptions at Ciba-Geigy. Though the assumptions here are not as clear as DEC, the general indications point towards the management perceiving the employees as good workers who would work responsibly and loyally and put in efforts towards achieving organizational goals and objectives, following which their loyalty would be rewarded accordingly. Individuals were assumed to do the best in the work that was given to them and reward for loyalty was quite high unlike other paces. These assumptions led Ciba-Geigy to ultimately merge with one of its previous competitors, Sandoz, and go on to become Novartis, one of the biggest and most powerful pharmaceutical giants in the pharmaceutical industry. The following sections of this paper aim to discuss and analyze how management can get the employees it wants. Although competent employees are obtained through effective recruitment strategies, inadequate employee retention strategies give rise to loss of proficient workers (Cascio, 2003). With a good employee base and proper retention strategies in place high-growth businesses can realize significant benefits. This is true as the workforce or human resource is the most important and indispensable asset in any business organization (Adebayo, 2001; Ejiofor and Mbachu, 2001). There are many strategies and policies that can be put to practice to ensure that management gets the workforce it wants. A basic strategy that can ensure that the management gets the employees it wants is to get a good reward policy in place (Gberevbie, 2008). This is because motivation in the form of rewards encourages employees to perform well and conform to organizational goals and objectives (Gberevbie, 2008). However there are certain criteria that a reward policy or system must have. Firstly the rewards must be substantial and unique so that they are noticeable and meaningful. A meaningless and small reward system will not encourage and motivate current and future employees to work towards the goals and objectives of the organization. The second criterion is that organizations must keep to the reward system it has promised the employees. Additionally the reward systems must match the preferences of employees to a certain extent. This matching of reward systems to employee preferences will lead to job satisfaction. Job satisfaction leads to better employee performance and reduction in employee turnover. A study by Holton, Mitchell, Lee, and Inderrienden (2005), confirms that there is a positive relationship between job dissatisfaction, employee turnover and performance. Dissatisfaction leads employees to look for opportunities and this might finally result in the company having no competent staff to fill up the gaps because of the unwillingness of applicants to take up a job with the organization. As a result organizations will be unable to get the workers it wants. Hence companies have to ensure job satisfaction to the employees. This paragraph discusses another strategy that can ensure that the organization gets the people it wants is by having flexibility policies for its employees. Flexibility policies are said to increase organizational commitment and productivity (Eaton, 2003). Flexibility is an important job aspect that every employee requires in order to balance work and family life. Technology has caused work to become more portable and omnipresent. This makes it easier for organizations to offer flexible working policies to employees. Flextime usually defined as the ability to arrange flexible start and end work times with some core-hours requirement, is offered by some organizations. However flextime is often constrained by the nature of the job and the timings it has. Flexibility is not just about starting and ending times of work. It may also imply, taking days off as a compensation for working at non standard times or days and taking off work or working part time at certain points in life due to certain circumstances. Since most organizations limit flextime to certain hours of the day or certain days, the formal flexibility policies offered by organizations are not enough for employee motivation. The organizations, therefore consider informal flexibility policies while providing formal ones to the employees. Informal flexibility occurs when supervisors or managers allow extra flexibility to employees, other than that which is provided formally by the organization’s policies. This can increase encouragement in the employees. The culture of the workplace can help identify the kind of informal and formal flexibility policies that can be offered. The management of organizations must consider introducing flexibility policies, as study shows it increases commitment and productivity. It also reduces absenteeism in employees and employee turnover and companies that offer family friendly flexibility policies are very successful in getting the right kind of competent employees and retaining them. Flexibility also gives rise to autonomy on the job. Autonomy further leads to increased motivation and job satisfaction and hence generates organizational commitment. Eaton (2003) also predicts that flexibility policies play a major role in increasing employee productivity. A study by Bailyn (1993), shows that it is the organization’s informal culture and structure that influences employee behaviour. The organization’s formal policies do very little in shaping employee commitment and productivity. The author now examines a third strategy that can be used by the management to get the workforce it wants is to have an effective Knowledge Management system. A study conducted by Child and Shumate (2009), analyzes whether the use of Internet based repositories can increase team efficiency and thus lead to the employment and retention of competent workers. Hollingshead, Fulk and Monge, (2002). describe Knowledge Management (KM) as, “how distributed group members and their organizational colleagues, locate, store and retrieve the data, information and knowledge that they need for their individual and collective work”. KM systems provide the necessary information and knowledge required by teams to enable efficient completion of tasks. Knowledge Management systems are important to the organization as it increases success and performance outcomes. KM also boosts the creative side of their employees, making them realize their potential. It relieves them of the burden of searching for information and knowledge thereby allowing then to explore their creative sides. In the study conducted by Child and Shumate (2009), the results show a positive relationship between people-based KM, a team that is aware of who knows what and team effectiveness. Although the results don’t indicate a direct relationship between the use of repository and team effectiveness, team members prefer to have a clear perception of who knows what within the team. This perception can bring about efficiency within the team. Employees like to work in efficient teams where each person knows what the other is doing. An evolved team will always ensure increased efficiency and increased job satisfaction for employees. It encourages the employees to perform well and work towards organizational goals. Having a good team structure in place with the help of Knowledge Management will ensure that the organization gets competent workers. The following paragraph explores the fourth strategy to facilitate the management to get the employees it wants. This strategy ensures that the organization is equipped with certain employment rights. A paper by Heap (2009), explores the recently developed Charter of Employment Rights and how it can be applied to organizations to ensure employment and retention of capable workforce. The Charter was put forth by the Australian Institute of Employment Rights (AIER), to provide a framework for a new regulatory system for employers. The Charter is planned and expressed as a statement of rights and values that should underline the relationships and practices at work in Australia. The Charter highlights ten important rights, namely, good faith performance; work with dignity, freedom from discrimination and harassment, a safe and healthy workplace, workplace democracy, union membership and representation, protection from unfair dismissal, fair minimum standards, fairness and balance in industrial bargaining and effective dispute resolution. It specifically focuses and stresses on the importance of a sound relationship between the employers and workforce. The Charter’s primary roles include raising awareness, providing an alternate vision, acting as a diagnostic tool and being an instrument of education. The author says that if the management employs the key rights given in the Charter it can assure the current and future employees that it can provide a suitable and sustainable working environment. A fair and just workplace and a flexible environment are what all employees will look for in an organization. This in turn will encourage employees to be responsible, focused and put in efforts towards achieving organizational goals and objectives. Thus in conclusion, the management has to employ certain measures strategies to ensure that it gets the workforce it prefers. It must have a fair and just reward system, must have flexible working policies with adaptable starting and ending times, should have an efficient and effective Knowledge Management system in place and lastly it must ensure that it conforms to the ten key rights given in the Charter of Employment Rights. If all of the above measures are taken the management can be confident of getting a competent workforce in addition to having a lasting and sustainable relationship with them to bring about success and benefits to the organization at large. References ACCEL Team Development. Theory X and Theory Y. ACCEL Team Development. Retrieved 29 April, 2009. http://www.accel-team.com/human_relations/hrels_03_mcgregor.html Adebayo, A. (2001) Principles and Practice of Public Administration in Nigeria. Ibadan: Spectrum Books Ltd. Bailyn, L (1993). Breaking the Mold – Women, Men and Time in the New Corporate World. New York: Pre-press. Businessballs. Douglas McGregor’s Theory, Managing an X Theory Boss and William Ouchi’s Theory Z. Businessballs website. Retrieved 29 April 2009. http://www.businessballs.com/mcgregor.htm Cascio, W. F. (2003) Managing Human Resources: Productivity, Quality of Work Life, and Profits (6th edition). Boston: McGraw-Hill, Irwin. Child, J T and Shumate, M (2009). The Impact of Communal Knowledge Repositories and People-Based Knowledge Management on Perceptions of Team effectiveness. Management Communication Quarterly 2007, 21; 29. SAGE Publications Limited. Eaton, S C (2003). If You Can Use Them: Flexibility Policies, Organizational Commitment, and Perceived Performance. Industrial Relations Vol 42, No.2 Ejiofor, P. N. O. and A. U. Mbachu (2001) “Imperatives of Human Resource Practices in the New Millennium” Journal of the Management Sciences. Vol. 5. No. 1. January. Envision Software Incorporated. Douglas McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y. Retrieved 29 April 2009. http://www.envisionsoftware.com/articles/Theory_X.html Fisher, K (1999). Leading Self-directed Work Teams: A Guide to Developing New Team Leadership Skills. McGraw-Hill Professional, 1999. p 102, 103 Gberevbie, D E (2008). Employee Retention Strategies and Organizational Performance. Department of Political Science, University of OTA. Heap, L (2009). The Australian Charter of Employment Rights: Setting the Standard for New Legislation and Good Practice. Journal of Industrial Relations. SAGE publications Limited. Hollingshead, A and Fulk, J and Monge, P (2002). Fostering Intranet Knowledge Sharing: An Integration of Transactive Memory and Pubic Good Approaches. Cambridge, MA:MIT Press. Holton, B. C., T. R. Mitchell, T. W. Lee, and E. J. Inderrienden (2005). “Shocks as Causes of Turnover: What They are and How Organizations can Manage Them.” Human Resource Management. Vol. 44. No. 3. McGregor, Douglas(1960). Theory X and Theory Y. Workforce; Jan2002, Vol. 81 Issue 1, p32. Rabin, J (2003). Encyclopedia of Public Administration and Public Policy. Marcel Dekker, 2003. p 711, 712 Schein, E H (2004). Organizational Culture and Leadership. John Wiley and Sons, 2004. p 172 – 179 Read More